According to an April 24 post, cryptocurrency exchange OKX does not support the buying and selling of exchange-listed “shell tokens.”
The clarification comes after OKX staff member Hai Teng shared a series of WeChat conversations in which someone allegedly approached OKX staff to buy “shell tokens,” or as the individual put it:
“[Tokens] can be listed, but the project can no longer function. There are people who want to take over such projects.” Another message read: “Find an OKX shell token; the budget is 1.5 million US dollars, the deposit has been collected, send me a private message for the reliable one.” In response to the inquiry, Haifeng said: “OKX does not support buying shell tokens. Also, the projects that can sell shell tokens are those that do not normally function properly. "
Haifeng added that OKX regularly monitors the tokens listed on the exchange, and tokens whose developers “maliciously manipulate the market, operations, security and other risky behaviors” will be delisted from the exchange. “Don't even think about making this kind of money at OKX," he wrote.
On the same day, OKX founder Xu Mingxing also commented on Haifeng's tweet: "Don't be evil. All projects that stop development will be delisted according to the OKX listing agreement."
Like shell companies, shell tokens involve coins that have no significant underlying business activity, assets, or market value. In the case of shell tokens, a project may have gained initial traction for its token to meet exchange listing requirements, but later, its business activities and operations have stalled. When a project ceases to function, its underlying token needs to be manually removed from the list. As OKX staff pointed out, buying shell tokens could lead to market manipulation.
